You've got questions, we've got answers. If you need help with something you didn't find in our guide, please shoot us an e-mail question and we'll do our best to answer. We'll publish the best and most common questions here.

All of the cars you get to choose from at the start are pretty slow. To make picking the best one difficult, you don't get to see any specs on the cars, so unless you're a fan of cars you might be picking blind. While none of the cars have a huge advantage, the Ford Fiesta and Honda Fit are the two best vehicles of the bunch. They're just as low on power as the others, but both sport commendable handling characteristics.

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Whilst racing, if you press RIGHT on the D-PAD you get an image of your car. I get that as your car gets more damaged, the image gets more red, but what are the consequences of each section of the car being damaged?

Answer

The damage results in various effects, depending on the severity and location of the damage, as well as your difficulty settings. You could lose steering ability, or greatly reduce the power of your engine. Front end damage is most likely to affect your car's internals and overall performance. Damage is reset at the end of the race, so it doesn't carry over to the next one.

Question submitted by Jack

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Some cars say that they're avalible to VIP members only. What does that mean and how do I become one?

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From what I can tell, you have to have bought the Limited Collector's Edition of the game, which comes with a code for becoming a VIP. I don't have an LCE version to check, sadly.

Question submitted by Greg

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What causes me to be gridded in a certain position (so far 7th or 8th) at the start of a race? It makes it hard to pass everyone to winin a short race.

Answer

Yeah, that's a problem with the early races. I was never able to find something that lets you qualify for a better starting position. To make up for it, I just drove very aggressively and didn't feel bad about diving inside corners and hitting the sides of other cars to pass.

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Reader Brad adds... "Starting grid position is determined by your car class and performance number. A B699 car will be behind an A700 car in the starting grid."

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Reader David adds... "Your starting position at the beginning of the game (against computer opponents in career mode) is dictated by your career level. Levels 1-4 = grid position 8th. Levels 5-9 = grid position 7th. Levels 10-14 = grid position 6th, etc. Once you are competing at the higher levels (like 40 and above), your car's PI indicates where you start on the grid."

Question submitted by Eddie

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I'd like to know, between a turbocharger and supercharger, which to pick over the other and why.

Answer

Depends on the particular car--but assuming both upgrades give you the same amount of horsepower gain, you should also look at the dyno charts, which the game provides. Generally, turbocharged cars suffer what's called "turbo lag." Since the turbochargers require exhaust to spool up, you need to first get the engine up to speed before their effect really kicks in. This means that the first part of your RPM range will not really get the benefit of the turbo, but once the engine is up to speed you'll get a sudden kick of power as the turbocharger is spun up.

A supercharger is driven by the motor itself, so even at low RPM it's having an effect. If you look at dyno charts, the line for a supercharged engine is usually more steady, with less steep an incline than the sudden burst of power a turbocharger gives. A turbocharged dyno might look like a normally aspirated dyno for the first few thousand RPM before quickly and steeply rising in horsepower.

In general, given the same ultimate horsepower gains, a supercharger is preferred because it affects more of your RPM range.

Question submitted by Matthew

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Any pointers on passing? I know that out-braking an opponent is a big part of it, but it's still hard for me to past unless my opponent makes a huge mistake. Or I can muscle my way past them by pushing the rear end of their car from the inside of the corner, but I regard this is cheating.

Answer

Passing can be tough, and in the really short races you sometimes have to be aggressive and engage in what you call cheating (I hate it, too) since there's no time for patience. But when you wanna race legit, out-braking is for sure a big part of passing. Take the inside line and slip in front of the opponent, even if it means deviating from an ideal line. A lot of passing attempts will actually slow you down, but it's less of a problem if you can also force the opponent to slow down behind you. Get in the opponent's way--it's perfectly legit--by stuffing your car in front of him.

You can also get good passes coming out of slow turns and heading into long straights. Into the slow turn, try to set yourself up so that you can get on the accelerator as soon as possible, which sometimes requires going into the turn deeper than you normally would. You can frequently gain a few MPH on the opponent as you exit the turn into the straight. Stay right behind the opponent to draft and gain a further speed advantage. If you get it right, just a few MPH in your favor will let you slip past the opponent, at least enough to stuff him in the next corner and force him to deviate.

Don't get too frustrated, though. In real racing, passing can be the most challenging aspect of an event, especially if a given course doesn't have great passing spots. Patience is key/

Question submitted by Ryan

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I was just wondering how to shift in Forza. When should I shift up, when should I shift down?

Answer

Shifting up is easy—as you accelerate, the revs rise with your speed. When you reach the engine's redline, you want to shift to a higher gear, which lowers revs and lets you continue to accelerate. If you don't upshift, your speed will be limited by the engine's redline.

You want to downshift when you slow down, but it's not as clear cut as upshifting. The goal is to keep the engine RPMs in the optimal range for power. Let's assume you're slowing down into a 40 mph corner. You'd want to downshift into a gear that would keep your engine revving high, which is where the power is. If you go into a 40 mph corner in sixth gear, your engine speed (RPMs) will drop to the point that you'll have difficulty accelerating out of the turn. Instead, you'd want to downshift, probably all the way to first or second gear depending on your car.

Be careful when downshifting, as you can downshift too much and over-rev the engine, which can cause severe damage. You also don't want to put yourself in a low gear at absolute max RPM—if first gear hits redline at 40 mph, then first gear is too low for a 40 mph turn. Use second gear, which might have a power range of 35 - 60 mph, to give you a solid burst of acceleration before having to upshift out of the turn and into the follow straight.

Question submitted by Ernest

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I have noticed than when trying to put spoilers on my car, it adversely affects my car's top speed, yet it gives me more control. Should I use spoilers or not?

Answer

The reason it adversely affects speed is that a spoiler acts as added weight pushing down on the car. This generally helps your tires with traction at speed, but added weight inherently makes the car slower. But since the spoiler's effect increases with speed, you likely won't notice any reduction in speed except for at the top end.

In short, yeah, you should use a spoiler to improve your vehicle's handling. I wouldn't worry about the speed reduction unless you're racing on a speedway where top speed is actually attainable.

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Reader Michael adds... "It is a common misconception that weight affects top speed, but it does not. Weight lowers acceleration, all else being equal. Aerodynamic aids do reduce top speed, however, but the increased drag causes this, not the weight. Just as the downforce effect is minimal until a high enough speed is attained, so too is the effect on speed. Both downforce and drag rise with the square of the car's speed. A car's top speed has nothing to do (directly) with its weight. Engine power and drag are the determining factors."

Question submitted by Chiggle

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I have looked everywhere for an answer and cant see an official statement anywhere. Why doesn't Forza 3 have the 2008 Skyline GT-R?

Answer

Is this a trick question? The last generation Skyline GT-R (before the current, 2009 GT-R) ended production in 2002. It is weird that there is no 2009 GT-R, though.